


The Lady in Red

by EmilyBea



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-20 21:07:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13725978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmilyBea/pseuds/EmilyBea
Summary: Reader requested oneshot (that originally appeared in my mixtape collection on FF and Tumblr) that goes with the song ‘The Lady in Red’ by Chris De Burgh. This is an AU where Emma and Killian have long been best friends but Killian has always loved Emma and was biding his time before making a move. He’s decided tonight is the night to tell her just as soon as this company gala they have to go to is finished. Only Emma shows up in a red dress meant for distraction and the plan goes a little off the rails.





	The Lady in Red

“Remind me again who thought it would be a good idea to throw a gala in the midst of our busiest selling season?” Killian Jones asked as he worked to get the bow tie that this tux required knotted up to satisfaction.

It wasn’t the formality of the evening that was off putting to Killian. After all this was just a step above the usual suit and tie that running a company as large as Jones & Co. required, but it was the call to his time and attention. The purpose of this evening was to bolster morale after a mightily successful year on the anniversary of the company’s founding forty years ago. Over the past few years Killian and his elder brother Liam had taken their already strong family business and brought it that much further into the 21st century. Now they were competing on a level that had seemed out of reach only a short time ago, and though Killian was proud as hell of him and his brother, he was also starting to realize that he needed more to his life than his work. He’d put too much on hold to help build up the empire, and now all he wanted was a chance to try at different segments of his world. He only hoped that the moves he was planning would be well received, since most every hope of happiness he clung too all hinged on one person – the girl he’d loved nearly half his life, who he’d foolishly never made a move on.

“That would be Elsa, sir,” Killian’s assistant, Belle, replied as she scanned her iPad, no doubt handling any and all last minute emergencies that might be headed his way. Thank God for Belle. Lord only knew where he would be without her.

“Ah, right. Well in that case there was never any chance of avoiding this, was there? Once Elsa has an idea, Liam will stop at nothing to make it so.”

“True,” Belle agreed as she flicked her gaze up and smiled thoughtfully. “But I bet she’d prefer that he just man up and ask her out already.”

Killian laughed heartily at that, shaking his head at Belle though he knew she was dead on with that analysis. Liam, brilliant and bright as he was, was somehow even less given to emotional risk taking than Killian, and if Killian was a slow mover then Liam was glacier-like in his pacing. It didn’t matter that Elsa, their company’s head of marketing, was clearly and obviously in love with him. Liam was so wrapped up in his own silent pining he never could seem to read the signs and take the plunge.

“He’ll get there…” Killian stated evenly before qualifying that statement. “ _Eventually_.”

Belle muttered something to herself that Killian didn’t fully hear, but that sounded like this familial quirk of theirs was starting to get old. He scratched behind his ear at the comment, knowing that in his case it was right too. Try as he might to conceal his true feelings for the woman in his life, Killian knew his assistant, and damn near everyone else, could tell the way he felt. He might not be as bad as Liam, but he was nearly there, and since he hadn’t told anyone of his intention to finally confess how he felt this evening, he probably seemed just as hopeless a case as his brother.

“Well, I think we best be off then. No need to face a scolding about punctuality _again_ , especially since Liam’s rented out space in this very building. Can you imagine his horror at our tardiness, Belle?” Killian feigned a shiver as he took a final look in the mirror that lined the inside of one of the cabinets in his office. He looked sharp as he could given a twelve-hour workday, he expected, and that would just have to be good enough.

“I think it’s best we all avoid thoughts like that. But there’s one thing before you go, sir,” Belle said as Killian turned his attention to gathering the last of his things, knowing that in just a few moments his date – his love – would be arriving and the rest of his life would be just at the horizon.

“Whatever it is can wait until tomorrow, can’t it?” Killian teased, assuming there was nothing truly daunting heading their way.

“It’s about Emma,” Belle offered and immediately Killian stopped. Emma Nolan, his best friend, and the woman he also happened to be madly in love with, was always the exception to every rule, and whatever Belle was about to say, Killian was suddenly desperate to hear it. Thoughts of the gala were long gone, though the one thing that had made the whole idea bearable was that she’d be coming tonight and he’d have his chance to tell her how he felt.

“Emma? Is she all right?” Killian asked, panic shooting through him until Belle nodded.

“Yes, she’s totally fine,” Belle said quickly, helping Killian to breathe again. “She’s just running a little late. She got held up in court and she said to meet her down there. Actually her exact words were ‘he can brave the stuffed shirts for ten minutes without me and I promise I’ll make it up to him.’”

Killian laughed aloud at that, knowing that was exactly Emma’s way. It didn’t matter that she was pretty much New York royalty given her parent’s wealth and pedigree. Emma never cared for any formal affairs where there was schmoozing or undue flattery of any kind. She tolerated it, and damn did she play the role of high society princess perfectly when she had to, but the real Emma was so much more than most people could fathom. She was raw and real and adventurous, and her life had bigger dreams and ambitions than the tiny bubble of Manhattan wealth could imagine.

“Let me guess, she won the case didn’t she?” Killian asked, hearing the pride and amusement in his voice as he did and now it was Belle’s turn to laugh aloud at the stupid question.

“Well of course she won. She’s not just any old public defender – she’s the best damn public defender in the city!”

Killian grinned at that, knowing that Belle’s praise had been hard earned on Emma’s part. Perhaps there were not means of scientifically measuring who could be ‘best,’ but of one thing Killian was certain: there was no other lawyer out there who cared so much for her clients as Emma. She gave her heart in every trial, taking on the cases that often seemed hopeless but that were the most worth fighting. It was grueling work, but never had Killian heard Emma complain about how much had to be done. She simply charged forward, carrying not only the weight of her world on her shoulders, but the hopes and dreams of the people she was charged to help and their families. That was not a role that Emma took on lightly, and her unwillingness to ever give up on an innocent person in a bad situation had earned her the nickname of ‘savior’ in certain circles. To Killian the name wasn’t hard to accept by any means. After all, Emma had been his savior since they were only children.

It had been years since the fateful day when Killian and Emma first crossed paths. He’d just relocated to America, with him and Liam being taken in by their long estranged uncle after the passing of their Mum. Technically Killian’s father was alive enough to fulfill state requirements, but he’d never had any interest in being a caretaker and Killian and Liam had never had any love for the man who let them down at every turn. Their uncle, though not particularly warm, had been a vast improvement to their father and he’d sent Liam and Killian to finish up school at one of the best private prep academies in the city. It was there that Killian had met Emma, and he’d forever be grateful for her immediate kindness, charming sense of humor, and vibrant wit that made his first day and every day thereafter bearable. In what should have been some of the darkest times of his life, after losing his mother and the home he’d always known, Killian had found a light to rival the sun, and that light had never faded in all the years he’d had Emma in his life.

It was hard to pinpoint at what point the love of a friend had shifted to more, it was such a gradual process that it felt that he had always been in love with her, but the past few years his true feelings became inescapable. Killian had had a few casual relationships in his life, women who filled a role when Emma had suitors of her own, but a day had come when Killian realized they would never be enough. Perhaps he wasn’t ready to give Emma all that she deserved, and he was honestly terrified that this love was one sided and would not be returned in the same way, but he wouldn’t be dating anymore. Indulging in anything that wasn’t the magic he knew was possible with Emma seemed a betrayal to the woman he loved, and so Killian had sworn off dating until he’d reached the goals that he and Liam had put in place for the company. That choice had made for a sharply improved work ethic, but it had also been lonely. The only consolation was that Emma hadn’t had anyone serious in her life either, but now all Killian could think was that he was wasting precious time. Maybe she would reject him, but if there was even a chance that she wouldn’t Killian didn’t want any more days to pass where he didn’t get to be as open and honest about how he felt with Emma as he could.

These hopes for what could be with Emma were a near constant in Killian’s life now, and they stuck with him as he made his way to the ballroom downstairs and greeted his brother. He began the routine of shaking the right hands and thanking the right people, but time was dragging and his mind was elsewhere. Until Emma got here, Killian would feel uneasy but even when she arrived Killian knew that anxiety would linger. It wasn’t every day that a man went up to his best friend and told her that he loved her and this would change everything. For better or worse the truth would be out there once their commitments this evening were fulfilled and Killian could only hope that Emma would accept his heart and his love now that he was brave enough to give it.

“You sure everything’s all right, Killian?” Liam asked him at one point and Killian turned to his brother, knowing his agitation must be far clearer than he anticipated.

“Aye. Or rather it will be, at least I hope.”  
  
“This wouldn’t have to do with a certain blonde savior you’ve always been mad for, would it?” Killian raised a brow in quiet questioning and Liam only smiled before nodding across the room. “Because she’s here you know. Just walking in now.”

There were moments in life that Killian would always remember – the highs, the lows, the truly out of the ordinary – but this one right here topped them all. Seeing Emma for the first time across the ballroom tonight felt like it had always been meant to happen. All this time spent grappling with his feelings about what he wanted and what Emma deserved were dropped away now, and all that remained was an intense rush of love and appreciation for the woman he adored more than anything the world over.

Gorgeous on any day and in any state, Emma was truly a vision this evening. Her long blonde hair flowed in delicate waves, casting that golden hue in the light. It was almost too pure a sight, matched only by her eyes and the gleam of excitement in the green depths that Killian could see from here, but that was the purity ended. Because right now Emma was donning a dress that had one purpose and one purpose alone – to bring Killian to his knees and have him cursing himself for not already having her in his arms right now. A scarlet red color, the floor length gown hugged every curve of Emma’s lithe curves just right, and yet the sexiest part of all of it was that Emma knew from the look on her face aimed right his way that she was the most beautiful woman in the room. The confidence of her smirk and the challenge in her expression was the final straw and the next thing Killian knew he was in motion, making his way across the room as Emma did the same. There was only one problem – it appeared that Killian wasn’t the only one who had his sights set on Emma, and before Killian could get to her, another hand reached out to stop her.

“Not fucking likely,” Killian growled out loud enough to startle the couple next to him dancing, but Killian didn’t stop moving, and though Emma made eye contact with Walsh, a smarmy but still financially desirable client of Jones & Co., she quickly removed her hand from his and looked back to Killian where her gaze remained. By then Killian was only steps away from her, but it wasn’t near enough to avoid giving Walsh a chance to speak.

“A pretty lady like yourself shouldn’t be here all alone. Why don’t we head back to my place and -,” 

Whatever ridiculous and unacceptable solicitation Walsh was about to offer to Emma, Killian wasn’t about to hear it, and instinct told him that he couldn’t wait any more. Maybe it would be more proper to say something first, but what was there left to say that he couldn’t show her right now. As soon as Emma was within arms reach he pulled her into him, feeling her body flush against his and the way she went from initially startled to immediately relaxed. Her face began to flush, her eyes searched his with question and a mix of something that looked a lot like hope, and then she licked those tormentingly tempting lips of hers and he was lost. He dipped in to kiss her, a kiss years and years in the making, and the spark that was unleashed was instantaneous. Doubt could no longer linger in the face of such a kiss, not when Emma met him stroke for stroke and arched just as closely into him as he did with her.

For a span of time that Killian couldn’t comprehend everything around them slipped away, and a wave of blindingly bright sensation came rushing in. The high of it was dizzying, intoxicating, and addicting and pulling away from Emma and the kiss was too hard to do. The only way Killian could bare to do it was because he knew before they had so much as said a word that Emma felt this too. There was no faking that kind of reaction, and as much as Killian needed this, Emma had needed it too. That filled him with a sense of pride and honor and when they did break apart, Killian couldn’t keep the giant grin from appearing on his face.

“You just kissed me,” Emma said dazedly, her voice filled with a total sense of astonishment as her fingertips came to touch her lips gently. “Wow I can’t believe it actually worked.”

“Worked?” Killian asked confused and then Emma giggled in that way that was all too rare now but still was the sweetest thing Killian had ever heard. She’d been more prone to it when they were younger, but whenever that laugh came it signaled Emma was filled with a real and tangible sense of happiness. To know he had given her that meant the world to him, and he yearned to hear it over and over again.

“Yeah, um, I’ve kind of wanted you to do that forever now, and Ruby said when in doubt wear red so…”

Killian ran his thumb across the corner of Emma’s mouth, wanting so badly to kiss her again but holding back since they were still very much in the middle of a business event and being watched no doubt by everyone they cared about. Even with the audience though Killian didn’t know if he could hold off for long. It felt like a dam had broken free and now all of the feelings he had been tucking away had to come out. He had to make Emma see the truth of what he felt for her, but being here right now was hardly suitable for the kind of moment that they _should_ have.

“Forever is a long time, love. You know all you had to do was ask,” he said, pulling an eye roll from Emma even as her hand ran over his chest and rested just above his heart.

“And what about you, Jones? That kiss didn’t just come out of nowhere.”

“No it didn’t,” Killian admitted before taking a look around the room and seeing that yes, everyone was paying too close attention to them. As a response he took Emma’s hand in his and asked her a question he already knew the answer to. “Do you trust me, love?”

“Always,” Emma promised, and with a quick kiss to her palm Killian led them out of the ballroom and to the elevators.

Emma looked surprised when he chose to head back up to his office instead of down to the garages below, but truth was Killian needed guaranteed privacy and he didn’t think he could wait to get her home. Emma seemed to understand though when he silently tried to tell her that with a look, and the softness in her eyes coupled with the brief kiss she placed to the corner of his mouth set him alight. Gods this was perfect – she was perfect – and Killian just had to try and figure out a way to make him seem even half as good a candidate for love as Emma was for him.

“Think anyone is still up here?” Emma asked, her voice a silky whisper as her hand remained in his and Killian led her to his office across the way.

“No. Liam’s orders. Everyone was to attend the party. Night staff too.”

“Hmm a whole office to ourselves. Whatever shall we do?” Emma teased and Killian chuckled too as he pulled her inside his office and locked the door behind him.

“That remains to be seen, love. First I have to say something I should have said a long time ago.”

“You love me,” Emma filled in with a smirk and Killian’s jaw dropped for a moment before he regained some composure. He ran a hand through his hair as the other held onto Emma’s hip.

“Aye. You knew?” 

“Not for certain,” Emma said as she shook her head. “But I hoped you did. And then that kiss… well that kiss told me everything I need to know.”

“Did it tell you about the part where I intend to marry you and spend my whole life trying to deserve you?” Killian asked, taking this about a dozen steps further than he ever intended to, but he was so pleasantly thrown off from Emma’s understanding him that he couldn’t seem to care. Her smile never waivered even as the surprise registered on her face at his bold words.

“Not quite, but I think that can be arranged. After you take me on a ‘proper date’ of course,” she said making a mockery of his lingering accent as her hands came to untie the bow he was wearing with deft precision.

“Of course. God I love you, Emma,” he said as his hands ran across her body and Emma pressed a kiss to his lips lightly before whispering the sweetest words he’d ever heard.

“I love you too, Killian. So let’s not wait anymore, okay? We’re ready now.”

He’d never agreed with anything more, and though a part of him reasoned somewhere in the far reaches of his mind that he should slow this down and make this first time with Emma more romantic, it wasn’t to be. Putting off how they felt for this long had broken down his resolve and it had clearly done the same for Emma as she worked to unbutton his shirt as quickly as she could even as she pulled him close to kiss him. Killian was ready to do much of the same, starting with figuring how this damned enticement of a dress came apart, but before he could maneuver it off of her Emma took a step back and smiled at him, a look of challenge in her jade colored eyes that set his already heated system that much more into a frenzy.

“You know I’ve thought about the two of us in this office a lot over the past few years…” Emma said as she came around to sit on the edge of his desk playfully. Killian’s hands balled into fists in an attempt to keep him grounded even as he moved towards her. It seemed Emma wanted to tease this out a little, and hard as it was to keep from shoving everything on his desk aside right now and taking her, he’d indulge her. Hell, he’d give her anything her heart could ever want so long as she was his.

“That makes two of us, love. All those lunches we shared here, I always had other ideas about what should be on the menu,” he said, boxing her in and nipping lightly at a spot just under her ear that made her shiver as her hands came up to run over him.

“Show me,” Emma whispered and that plea was enough to have Killian in motion. It was his clearance to take the reins, and now that he was leading the charge, the only thought in his mind was to see Emma satisfied. The only question was how to go about it. The setting called for something fast, a stolen moment floors above a party that the two of them should really be at, but this first time Killian needed something like slow and languid. He wanted Emma to know after this that he was the right choice for her to build a life with, and that required a certain level of demonstration of his ability to make her taste the bliss she was always offering him.

He started with another heated kiss as his hands roamed over her body, and after finding the zipper at her back, he eased it down just enough to let the sleeves slip off, revealing her full, pert breasts to his gaze. What he wouldn’t give to strip her of the garment all together, but that would have to wait until tonight when he had her in his bed. And he would have her; that was a guarantee. Despite her want for dates and a courtship, which he would certainly grant her, Killian had no intention of spending another night away from Emma. He’d convince her right now that she wanted the same thing, and he knew it wouldn’t be difficult to do when his mouth trailed kisses down to nip and suck her in this most sensitive place.

At the same time that his mouth and fingers teased Emma’s breasts his other hand wandered south, pushing through the slit of material the dress provided until his fingers traced the edge of the lace that kept him from her sex. She was wet already, so riled up that Killian couldn’t help but growl, and the distraction of Emma’s desire demanded he kneel before her, clearing the material from his view of her and inhaling her sweet scent as his mouth watered. How long had he wanted this? How long had he dreamed of scenes just like this with Emma trusting him and giving herself so willingly to him like this? He didn’t know, but the reality of having Emma in his clutch was more intoxicating than all the fantasies he’d allowed himself over the years. It was also more vivid and real than anything his mind could ever conjure, and at the look of need and love and lust in Emma’s eyes Killian was spurred on to taste her slick flesh and pleasure her further.

“Killian!”

Emma’s cry of his name was loud, louder than their location should have allowed, but hell if Killian cared. He wouldn’t give a damn if the whole bloody place heard Emma’s moan of ecstasy. Let them all know that he had done this, that he could please such a spectacular woman, but in the back of his mind Killian remembered that no one was here, and that at least for tonight he and Emma could indulge in such heated displays. The thought only fueled him further, and when Emma was at her peak and falling over Killian didn’t let up, only giving her just enough time to come down from her high before riling her up again and demanding she give him another release. When she had Killian debated demanding another, but her earnest plea that he take her erased that idea. Seconds later he was up and releasing his impossibly hard length, anticipating easy access but finding his love intent on some teasing of her own. Her hand gripped him with just the right tightness, and the softness of her skin had Killian hissing out a breath.

“ _Fuck_ , Emma. If I promise you can have your way with me when we get home, will you show mercy?”

Emma grinned at that before nodding and pulling him closer and then he thrust inside her and the immediate sensation shocked his system so completely it felt like every nerve was sensing the realest kind of pleasure. To say that sex had never felt this way was unnecessary; this was clearly earth shattering and Killian could tell from Emma’s expression and the flush on her skin that it was just the same for her. The unyielding spark and crackle of the chemistry between them kept them hot and on edge as they came together over and over again, and only when Killian thought he couldn’t take a second more without coming Emma begged him to fall with her and he did.

“That was…” Killian began, not having words to articulate just how amazing how that had been.  


“Just the beginning,” Emma said happily as her hand cupped his cheek.

“Aye, love. Just the beginning.”

And the beautiful thing was that beginning grew into something so much more. Killian and Emma ended up getting everything they wanted, and after all that waiting the life they built proved more beautiful and more magical than either of them could have ever dreamed.

…………

_I've never seen you looking so lovely as you did tonight_

_I've never seen you shine so bright_

_I've never seen so many men ask you if you wanted to dance_

_They're looking for a little romance, given half a chance_

_And I have never seen that dress you're wearing_

_Or the highlights in your hair that catch your eyes_

_I have been blind_

_The lady in red is dancing with me, cheek to cheek_

_There's nobody here, it's just you and me_

_It's where I want to be_

_But I hardly know this beauty by my side_

_I'll never forget the way you look tonight_

_I've never seen you looking so gorgeous as you did tonight_

_I've never seen you shine so bright, you were amazing_

_I've never seen so many people want to be there by your side_

_And when you turned to me and smiled, it took my breath away_

_And I have never had such a feeling_

_Such a feeling of complete and utter love, as I do tonight_

_The lady in red is dancing with me, cheek to cheek_

_There's nobody here, it's just you and me_

_It's where I want to be_

_But I hardly know this beauty by my side_

_I'll never forget the way you look tonight_

_I never will forget the way you look tonight_

_The lady in red, the lady in red_

_The lady in red, my lady in red_

_I love you_

**_Post-Note: So it’s been quite some time since my lovely reader asked for this chapter, and FINALLY getting it out there makes me a happy camper. Because I have started a new multi-chapter story, there will also be some more delays in my mixtape chapters for a while. But not to worry, because I already have a few of them written and after I get the first few chapters of the new story out I will be switching to an every other week schedule. Anyway, hope that you all enjoyed the smut and fluff and thanks to all of you who send me love for every chapter and who send your prompts and song requests my way. You are all awesome and I am wishing you a lovely rest of your weekend. Thanks again!!_ **


End file.
